His Dark Wings

Chapter XI

(A/N) As I mentioned in the A/N at the end of Chapter X, This chapter will focus solely on Taehyung and explain what he was up to during his two week absence.

The air was frigid. Taehyung missed the days when it couldn't bother him. But now, he was freezing. He had been walking for hours now. It had been hours since he had yelled at Miles to leave. He could already feel regret spawning in his gut. He wanted to run back, to grab the brunette and kiss him and tell him he was sorry. But he couldn't. He had to protect Miles and that meant staying away from him.

 But do I have to? Most humans have a shitty life when they become involved in the Afterlife world but...there are exceptions. No. It's better to leave than risk Miles' safety. If I'm going to lose him, I'm doing it on my terms and giving him a shot at a happy, normal life.

 Taehyung checked his phone. It was past midnight. He had no idea where he was going. He sighed as he dropped onto a bench at a bus stop. He leaned forwards, his head in his hands. All he could think about was the boy that he loved. A twig snapped behind him and he jumped up. He jumped up to see Jimin. After what he almost did to Jungkook, Taehyung was wary of the others. Even Jimin. 

 "I'm not going to hurt you. None of us will." Jimin said. "I'm also not going to hound you about coming back, but I am going to ask you to come with me."

 "Why?" Taehyung asked, his suspicions rising.

 "I need to talk to you, Taehyung. Please?"

 "Fine, but any funny business and I'm leaving."

*

 Jimin led the blonde to a nearby hotel where they ascended to the rooftop in the elevator. The elevator ride was tense and awkward, but neither attempted to make small talk. It had been too long and too much had happened. They arrived at the roof and Jimin stepped out, followed by Taehyung. Namjoon, Jin, Hoseok, Yoongi and Jungkook. Taehyung turned, ready to run back into the elevator but Jimin had foreseen it and grabbed his arm. "Wait." 

 Taehyung grunted as he was spun around, Jimin refusing to loosen his grip. His eyes fell on Jungkook, who was sat on a nearby deck chair, eyes cast down. Fury welled up inside him at the sight of the youngest one.

 "What the hell is this?" Taehyung demanded.

 "Taehyung...it's been many years since we last had a conversation." Namjoon said.

 "Whose fault is that?" Taehyung spat, eyes moving to Jungkook who still had not looked up.

 "Taehyung we will stop chasing you. We will stop trying to convince you to come back. We have accepted that you will never come back home. But we will not accept being devoid of your company any longer." Namjoon explained. Taehyung was in shock, he looked at all of them in turn, noting that Jungkook was still looking down. 

 "Taehyung, we are sorry." Hoseok spoke up. "We regret our actions that night, more than you will ever know. We love you, we always have. We know our words will never be enough so..." he trailed off, looking at Jungkook. The younger finally looked up. His blue eyes were filled with tears. The strangest thing about them, however, was the warmth that radiated from them. The cold stare that Taehyung had come to know was gone, replaced by the bright warmth they once held. 

 "TaeTae..." Jungkook said, so softly it was barely audible. He slowly walked over to Taehyung who had the urge to rip his arm out of Jimin's grip and run. He stopped when he reached Taehyung and then his arms locked around the blonde. Taehyung gasped, his instincts beginning to kick in but they died instantly when he heard the crying and felt the shuddering body of the youngest one. "I'm so sorry..."